Overwhelmed and stuck on Florence restaurants

We've eaten at Osteria Vini E Vecchi both times we've been in Florence and absolutely love it. In fact, on our last trip we ate there twice. You definitely need a reservation but the food is delicious and creative and the family who runs it are wonderful.

The Trattoria La Casalinga is an okay spot, although it's not haute cuisine. It's fun and animated, but there are other more formal and in my opinion, more typical restaurants in Florence. Don't get me wrong--I have eaten there several times--and the food is good and the service adequate.

If you want a lunch that defies description, my own vote is Trattoria Mario next to the Mercato Centrale. Show up before it opens for lunch (12:00 noon) and prepare to wait for a shared table. Magnificent food and attentive service. Bring cash. No frills.

Thanks for the response. To clarify we’re definitely also want to hit a good local down home type of place. Will have to research Mario.

Also, saw another negative review today on La Giostra.. seems like people havent been treated too well there as of late. Might have to look elsewhere for our big 2nd dinner night

Vini e Vecchi Sapori was our favorite meal in Italy! Going back to Florence this summer basically to have the duck ragu again! I would make sure to have bistecca one night…there are lots of well-known places. We think of ourselves as foodies too but tend to like the traditional trattorias because they typically can’t be reproduced here!

Great we will definitely be switching from Casalinga to Vini E Vecchi, very excited about that

I also had La Giostra as our final dinner the last night in Florence in May. I did this list 2 years ago when planning our 2020 trip and am now revisiting to make reservations. (Did you do it online?)

From your post, I’m going to change this restaurant to Osteria Vini E Vecchio. The other places I have written are:

La Terraza Bar, then either Buca Mario or Antico Fattore (one block from the bar)
Cibrio Trattoria Toscana
Cafe La Loggia Piazza San Michaelangelo
Buca Lapi

Yeah did the La Giostra online. I havent changed that one yet. Ive heard nothing but great things until some recent tripadvisor reviews (the last 5 or so on there). The ambiance and food looks amazing but at that price point I dont want to be treated poorly. I will keep following up with that

Regarding La Giostra, it appears from recent reviews (assuming they can be believed, which is sometimes not justified) that the place may have become a victim of Instagram fame. The comments about the annex two doors down that appeared to be “for tourists”, along with a comment about the place being “filled with Americans” gave me pause. But the same British reviewer was disappointed that the server did not offer extra “Parmesan” for her pasta, so one has to look upon her criticism with some skepticism.

We had a wonderful dinner there 20 years ago, on the recommendation of my son who had spent the previous year as a student in Florence. He said to mention his name to the staff. This was our first trip to Italy and we did not know to make dinner reservations in advance, but when we arrived without them and I mentioned the name, the youngish hostess smiled and asked “And how is Max? We miss him”. And they made room for an extra table outside for us ( where we wanted to sit anyway).

The sommelier was an older man with long white hair that fell below his shoulders, topped with a white cloth hat. He was very friendly and helpful in recommending a moderately-priced local red to go with our meal. You can see a photo of this guy with a guest among the “Friends” photos on the website ( 3or 4 rows down on the left side).

The food and wine were excellent, and the service was friendly and not at all rushed. We were very pleased with the whole experience. I will admit we may have received special treatment, thanks to our son, but everyone around us seemed to be accorded the same quiet but attentive service.

However, that was 20 years ago. And I have seen other “old favorites” ruined by Instagram popularity, so I would take those reviews at face value and go elsewhere for your splurge meal.

I’ve made one reservation so far in Florence. One late afternoon, we are going to San Miniato Al Miniato hear the Gregorian monk chant. I’ve made reservations at Piazza Michaelangelo at Cafe & Ristorante La Loggia that overlooks the city. The reviews are very good, and it seems lovely at sunset.
I had originally thought Osteria Santo Spirito, but maybe I’ll do that for lunch one day.

I can’t decide between Osteria Vini E Vecchi or Buca Lapi. Buca Lapi looks so enticing!

I hope you don’t mind my asking questions about restaurants on your thread vs.making my own. I thought it might help you out, too.

The first day we arrive by train and should be out if the hotel and ready fur lunch by 1:00. We are staying in the historic district Hotel Davanzati. If it’s a nice day, I think we’d like to sit outdoors nearby. Can someone suggest an outdoor restaurant. We will have 3 hours until our Duomo climb, so imagine we will eat, then walk around until then.

Go ahead no problem. I’ve been obsessed with planning this trip so I love to read what everyone has to say.

55 days out our tentative meal plans are:

L’Osteria di Giovanni dinner
Osteria Vini E Vecchi Sapori lunch
La Giostra or other nice place dinner
Hungover pizza and panini street food lunch
Pasta cooking class dinner

As far as pizza and sandwiches go, had a friend recommend Pino’s for paninis and Gustapizza for pizza. Does anyone on this board have any recommendations for those?

I've learned to not take online reviews at face value. Especially when you see a flood of recent one-star reviews. This typically means that someone has a bone to pick and has enlisted help. And if they have only placed one review. Or any review they ever post is one or two-star. This says more about the reviewer than what is being reviewed. I was a strong advocate for TA years ago but it became a tainted well of bad/wrong/impractical advice. I do my own homework beforehand on options then usually will ask locals for their opinion. Quite often I will receive recommendations that I had not considered and found them to be excellent. YMMV

For panini, we love Panini Toscani, All'Antica Vinaio and I Fratellini. Have you considered Gucci Osteria? Obviously would be a splurge but if you're foodies, it's worth considering! We didn't have the budget for it when we were in Florence last week but we were privileged enough to dine at Osteria Francescana last summer and it was incredible.

Does Panini Toscani have tables to sit, or is it a grab and go? Do they offer wine?

For sandwiches in Florence, we like 'ino at via dei Georgofili, 3r/7r. Wine, barstools, maybe a table or two. Excellent ingredients.

Thanks for all the responses im really glad this thread took off. I’m also skeptical about the La G reviews especially since they are all coming in at the same time. I think I’m just going to call and make sure our reservation is in the main dining area and go with it. It’s our honeymoon in Italy i’m sure we will have a great time

I hope you prove those negative reviews to be wrong and you have a wonderful dinner at La Giostra.

Lol thanks, might even come back with a full trip report